Net adaptor for converting umbrella to shelter from insects



Nov. 11, 1969 w 'u 1ssr- ET AL 3,477,453

NET ADAPTOR FOR commune UMBRELLA T0 SHELTER FROM INSECTS Filed Jan. 23, 1968 Fig. 1

LQ as 2 i: 2 :i 3 1; is I).

14 I6 JWLWMM 4 'WMVM w I l) y W/ W W] W W WW W W7 ZQW/ W026 2A United States Patent US. Cl. 135-2 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An adaptor consisting of a dome-shaped covering for beach-type umbrellas, made of net impenetrable by winged and other insects, adapted to rest on the roof of the umbrella and possessing sidewalls that extend to the ground. A hole is provided in the center of the covering to permit the umbrella support pole to protrude therethrough, and loops are provided at the bottom, perimetral portions of the sidewalls for use in staking the adaptor to the ground. Devices are provided on the dome of the adaptor for securing it to the umbrella or preventing motion of the adaptor relative to the umbrella, examples of such devices including rubber, anchor-like grippers, or magnetic or magnetizable materials which coact with magnetizable or magnetic materials on the surface of the umbrella.

This invention relates to a shelter made of net which is relatively impenetrable by winged and other insects, and more particularly to an adaptor for converting an ordinary beach-type umbrella into such a shelter.

A principal object of this invention is to provide a relatively simple, inexpensive adaptor which can be rolled up and carried along with a beach umbrella, and in just a few seconds can be unrolled, draped over the erected umbrella, and secured in position so as to form a shelter in which people can work or play without being annoyed by insects.

Another object is to provide means on the adaptor for preventing movement thereof relative to the umbrella top once the adaptor is placed in its proper position.

Still another object is to provide means on both the adaptor and on the umbrella top which will coact with each other so as afiirmatively to prevent movement of the adapator relative to the umbrella top.

The foregoing and other related objects are accomplished by providing a net which comprises a number of sections joined together on the bias so as to form a circular, dome-shaped covering that approxmiately matches the contour of conventional beach-type umbrellas. Depending from the dome-shaped portion are sidewalls that reach the ground. A reinforcing, heavy binding made of canvas or duck material is attached to the bottom of those sidewalls, with loops extending therefrom at spaced intervals for use in receiving wooden stakes that are driven into the ground to anchor the net adaptor in place. The same binding material is used to reinforce all seams where the net sections are joined together, and also to reinforce the perimeter of an opening several inches in diameter which is provided at the center of the domeshaped portion to permit protrusion therethrough of the pole which supports the umbrella. At strategic locations along the under surface of the dome-shaped portion, preferably along the binding which extends radially from the centrally located opening, are located means for securing the net to the umbrella so as to prevent relative movement between them. The construction and operation of the invention will be better understood by reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a view in perspective of the net adaptor "ice fitted over a beach umbrella, which has been secured in an upright position by forcing the umbrellas supporting pole into the ground, and secured with the aid of wooden stakes driven into the ground so as to form a tent-like, insect-proof shelter;

FIGURE 2 is a section taken along line 22 of FIG- URE l to show one means of securing the net adaptor so as to prevent relative movement between it and the umbrella top; and

FIGURE 3 is a section taken along line 3-3 of FIG- URE 1 to show another means of securing the net adaptor so as to prevent relative movement between it and the umbrella top.

Referring to the drawings, it will be seen that a conventional beach umbrella 10 optionally having fringe 12, is secured by means of its support pole or shaft 14 which is firmly planted in the ground 16. The net adaptor 20 is made up of a number of wedge-shaped sections cut on the bias so that when joined together they form a circular, dome-shaped covering that has the same general contour as the umbrellas top portion and rests thereon as shown. Extending down to the ground from the lowermost terminal portions of the wedge-shaped dome sections are sidewall sections. The several dome and sidewall sections of the net adaptor are reinforced, at the points where they are joined together, by means of a fabric such as a heavy canvas or duck material 21. The net, which is of a common lattice work whose apertures are small enough to keep most insects from penerating through it, is shown enlarged at 22. The bottom extremities of the sidewalls are reinforced by the same material 21 used in reinforcing the section seams, and form a circular edging 23 with loops 24 spaced at intervals to receive wooden stakes 26 that secure the bottom of the adaptor firmly to the ground. One or more of the sidewall sections can be arranged to overlap an adjacent section to form a flap 50 covering an entrance to the shelter; optionally, a zipper 52 can be employed to join such adjacent sections so as readily to open or close the entrance.

At the center of the dome-shaped portion of the adaptor is a circular opening several inches in diameter, a reinforcing binding material defining the opening as at 32. This opening permits the adaptor to be fitted over and around the uppermost extremity of pole 14 which extends outside the umbrella top. If care is exerted in fitting the adaptor over the umbrella top, draping the sidewalls down to the ground and securing them by means of stakes 26, the net converter will form an insect-proof shelter for personnel which is fairly stable except in cases where winds or careless handling of the adaptor, as when people enter or leave the shelter, will cause the adaptor to be moved out of its proper position relative to the umbrella.

Optionally, means are provided for firmly securing the adaptor to the umbrella top so that the relative positioning of the two remains constant even in the face of relatively high winds or despite rough handling by persons entering or leaving the shelter. Several variations of such means are available, and two of them have been illustrated in the drawings. In 'FIGURE 2, for example, there will be seen rubber grippers 30 which preferably are shaped with teeth-like projections that are slanted in a generally downward direction so as to dig into the underlying surface of the umbrella like claws or cleats if the adaptor is pulled or pushed in a direction which would make it appear to fall downward off the umbrella top. These grippers 30 provide the friction necessary to secure the net adaptor to the fabric comprising the umbrella top, and serve to minimize relative movement of those two members.

Another means for securing the adaptor to the umbrella 3 top is illustrated in FIGURE 3. It consists of a magnetic material 40a and a magnetizable material 40b, one of which is sewn, stapled, glued or otherwise fixed in position on the dome-shaped portion of the adaptor, and the other of which is secured to the fabric comprising the umbrella top. When the adaptor is placed in position on the umbrella magnetic forces hold the magnetic material and the magnetizable material together, thereby preventing relative movement of the adaptor to the umbrella top. This arrangement not only works to minimize sli page of the adaptor as winds or careless handling cause the adaptors sidewalls to be pulled or pushed downward, but also works to prevent separation of the adaptor from the umbrella top by winds that sweep between the adaptor and the umbrella top and tend to lift off the adaptor.

In some cases, when the adaptor is used with umbrellas having steel ribs (not shown) for supporting the fabric comprising the umbrella top, it will not be necessary to have magnetizable materials sewn or otherwise fixed to the umbrella fabric top. The magnets located in the adaptor can be provided with adequate strength to set up sufiicient forces of magnetic attraction between the magnets and the steel ribs that will prevent slippage or motion of the adaptor relative to the umbrella top.

Although the prime advantage of the invention is its universality of use, in that it can be applied to almost any kind of umbrella-type supporting means without specially modifying the support means itself, where it is desired to make a more positive connection between the adaptor and the umbrella the two could be designed with means positively connecting one to the other. One such coacting arrangement has been described above, namely that in which the magnets and opposed magnetizable members are located in the adaptor and umbrella top, respectively. Other such coacting arrangements will suggest themselves to persons of ordinary skill in the art, e.g., mechanical snap fasteners, hooks and eyes or eyelets, etc., where one member of the connecting device is affixed to the dome of the adaptor and the other is afiixed to the umbrella top.

In conclusion, it will be obvious that the present invention is capable of wide variation within the scope of the inventive concept. Accordingly, it is not intended that the invention be limited to the specific illustration or the foregoing description, but rather only by the following claims which define the metes and bounds of the invention.

We claim:

1. A net adaptor for converting an umbrella to a substantially insect-proof shelter for personnel, comprising a circular dome-shaped portion made up of a plurality of wedge-shaped sections of a net-like material cut on a bias and joined together laterally with their uppermost terminal portions defining a relatively small circular opening permitting passage therethrough of the uppermost end of the umbrellas supporting pole, and their lowermost terminal portions defining a relatively large circular opening whose diameter is approximately the same as that of the umbrella tops largest diameter, gripping means at least a part of which is secured to the under side of said dome-shaped portion and adapted to establish a firm grip on the umbrellas top surface so as affirmatively to prevent relative movement between the dome-shaped portion and the umbrellas top surface, sidewall sections extending from the lowermost terminal portions of said wedge-shaped sections down to the ground which supports. the vertically positioned umbrellas supporting pole, and means for securing the said sidewall sections to the ground, whereby to keep the adaptor firmly positioned in place covering the umbrella and forming a tent-like shelter for personnel with the umbrella top forming a roof and the adaptors sidewall sections forming the sides of the shelter.

2. A net adaptor for converting an umbrella to a substantially insect-proof shelter for personnel, comprising a circular dome-shaped .portion made up of a plurality of wedge-shaped sections of a net-like material cut on a bias and joined together laterally with their uppermost terminal portions defining a relatively small circular opening permitting passage therethrough of the uppermost end of the umbrellas supporting pole, and their lowermost terminal portions defining a relatively large circular opening whose diameter is approximately the same as that of the umbrella tops largest diameter, gripping means consisting of rubber grippers secured to the under side of said dome-shaped portion and adapted to establish a firm grip on the umbrellas top surface so as aflirmatively to prevent relative movement between the dome shaped portion and the umbrellas top surface, sidewall sections extending from the lowermost terminal portions of said wedge-shaped sections down to the ground which supports the vertically positioned umbrellas supporting pole, and means for securing the said sidewall sections to the ground, whereby to keep the adaptor firmly positioned in place covering the umbrella and forming a tentlike shelter for personnel with the umbrella top forming a roof and the adaptors sidewall sections forming the sides of the shelter.

3. The adaptor of claim 2 in which the rubber grippers have teeth-like projections that face the surface of the umbrella top and are slanted in a downwards direction.

4. A net adaptor for converting an umbrella to a substantially insect-proof shelter for personnel, comprising a circular dome-shaped portion made up of a plurality of wedge-shaped sections of a net-like material cut on a bias and joined together laterally with their uppermost terminal portions defining a relatively small circular opening permitting passage therethrough of the uppermost end of the umbrellas supporting pole, and their lowermost terminal portions defining a relatively large circular opening whose diameter is approximately the same as that-of the umbrella tops largest diameter, gripping means consisting of a magnetizable means secured to the under side of said dome-shaped portion and which, when the adaptor is used with an umbrella having a magnetic device secured to the top of the umbrella, coacts with said magnetic device so as to prevent relative movement between the adaptor and the umbrella top, sidewall sections extending from the lowermost terminal portions of said wedge-shaped sections down to the ground which supports the vertically positioned umbrellas supporting pole, and means for securing the said sidewall sections to the ground, whereby to keep the adaptor firmly positioned in place covering the umbrella and forming a tent-like shelter for personnel with the umbrella top forming a roof and the adaptors sidewall sections forming the sides of the shelter.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,3 89,298 11/1945 Ellis. 2,943,634 7/1960 Morgan -l6 XR 3,333,595 8/1967 Bannister et al. 1352 KENNETH DOWNEY, Primary Examiner 

